ISTANBUL

The US Department of Agriculture said Monday it had canceled a $3 billion climate-focused farming program, after a review found it did not align with the priorities of the administration of President Donald Trump.

The program, known as Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities, or the PCSC, had been launched under the administration of former President Joe Biden.

"Following a thorough line by line review of each of these Biden era partnerships, it became clear that the majority of these projects had sky-high administration fees which in many instances provided less than half of the federal funding directly to farmers," the department said in a statement.

The department said some projects might continue if it can be shown that a large share of the awarded funding goes directly to farmers.

“The Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities initiative was largely built to advance the green new scam at the benefit of NGOs, not American farmers,” Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins stated.

The PCSC backed efforts such as planting vegetation to prevent erosion and improving nutrient management to limit the environmental impact of farming.

The Biden administration had projected the initiative would reach over 60,000 farmers and cut more than 60 million metric tons of emissions.

On his first day back in office, President Trump signed an executive order to withdraw the US from the Paris Climate Agreement -- a move reversing Biden’s decision to rejoin it. Trump also issued an order aimed at boosting domestic coal production.